Find an affordable laptop for every type of student.


  • Best all-purpose Windows laptop for students
    Lenovo Yoga 7i

  • Best MacBook for students
    MacBook Air M1

  • Best Windows 2-in-1 for students
    Microsoft Surface Pro 7

  • Best entry-level gaming laptop for students
    Dell G5 15

  • Best Chromebook for students
    HP Chromebook x360 14c

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One of the most important academic tools a college student needs is a laptop, a major financial investment. You can get a passable entry-level laptop for $300, but spending a few hundred more will give you college laptop options with better performance, longer battery life and a bigger and faster solid-state drive.

You might think between chip shortages and people continuing to work from home or remote learning, a good budget-friendly laptop for school might be tough to find. Luckily, you can still find laptops and two-in-ones with the latest processors from Intel and AMD. The only PCs you might have to wait for are those featuring the new powerful 11th-gen Intel Core processors that promise to increase performance in laptops for gamers, creatives and creators. You won't find models on this list with those processors just yet, but they are expected to be available later this spring and into summer -- just in time for your fall semester. 

Note that most of our choices for the best laptops for college run between $500 and $1,000. If you're looking for a less expensive college laptop -- or if you're open to an alternative to Microsoft Windows and Apple's MacOS -- we recommend checking out the best Chromebooks for students. On the flip side, if you're looking for a more powerful laptop for college, or a gaming laptop that doubles as a college laptop, we have some suggestions. So if you're ready to upgrade your tech, keep reading to find the best right laptop for you.